LSM2254 Fundamentals of Plant Biology

Lecture 2:

Plant Cell

Dr. Lau On Sun

Department of Biological Sciences

[email protected]

21st January, 2022

1
Are plant cells different?
How and why?

2
Outline

• Common structures in plant and animals cells

• Special features of plant cells

• Plastids

• Cell wall

• Vacuoles

• Plasmodesmata

3
The origin of the name “cell”

The term “cell” was first coined by Robert

Hooke (1635-1703) after he observed “box-
like chambers” from a thinly sliced piece of
cork, using a microscope that he built The famous early (1665) micrograph of
cork, drawn by Robert Hooke, and
described in his book Micrographia
4
Plant cell vs. animal cell

Natural History Museum, Vienna

5
Common features of plant and animal cells
Plasma membrane

Cytoplasm

• Plasma membrane

• Boundary between cell and the environment

• Lipid bilayers; contains proteins for various functions

• Cytoplasm

• Materials that fill each cell, excluding the nucleus

• Although appear to have no structure,
• contains cytoskeleton; highly organized

6
Common features of plant and animal cells
Nucleus

Mitochondrion

• Nucleus

• an organelle that stores DNA and controls cell activity

• surrounded by nuclear membrane

• Mitochondrion

• “Powerhouse of the cell”, i.e. generates cellular energy

• also contains DNA that is similar to bacteria

• Other organelles common to both

• Endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus, etc. Sugar + O2 -> ATP + CO2

7
What are the special structures in plant cells? — 1

1. Plastids

8
What are plastids?
• Double membrane organelles found in plants and algae

• many kinds; named after what they contain/do

• Site of biosynthesis and storage of chemical compound

• Often contains pigments (e.g. chloroplasts)

Proplastid

Kaundal et al., BMC Bioinformatics, 2013

9
Chloroplast
• Plastids that contain chlorophylls and conduct photosynthesis

• Chlorophyll, a green pigment, captures energy from light

• Critically important for plants

• Perform other functions:

• Synthesis of fatty acids, amino acids and other compounds

• e.g. precursors for ABA (a plant hormone; Lecture 8)

Chloroplasts

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastid#/media/File:Plagiomnium_affine_laminazellen.jpeg Energy + CO2 -> Sugar + O2

10
 Chloroplast (cont.)
• Chloroplasts can move within plant cells

• their movement is strongly influenced by light

• Under normal light, they spread out at the top part of the cell

• maximize light capture for photosynthesis

• Under light stress, they align on the side in columns to shade each others

• protect them from photo-oxidative damage

Light can attract chloroplast

Excess light Normal light

Top
view:

Oblique
view:

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/
File:Chloroplast_movement.svg Fujii et al., PNAS 2017
11
Chromoplast
• Chromoplasts

• Plastids that synthesize and store pigments (excluding chloroplasts) and

are not photosynthetically active
• Contain high amount of carotenoids

• Contribute to the distinctive colors of flowers, fruits, senesced leaves etc.

• may have evolved to attract pollinators

Chromoplasts

http://www.thepicta.com/tag/plastids

12
Chromoplast (cont.)
• Some plastids can be converted to each others

• Conversion is a regulated process

• During ripening of some fruits (e.g. tomatoes)

• Chloroplasts are actively converted to chromoplasts

• Chlorophylls are broken down and lycopene are synthesized

https://chirimoyo.ac.uma.es/espsol/public/ProteomicsUB.php
13
Amyloplast
• Amyloplasts

• Non-pigmented plastids that synthesize and store starch granules through the
polymerization of glucose
• Two components of starch: amylose (linear) & amylopectin (branched)

• Found in fruits and storage tissues, such as potato tubers

• Amyloplast can be converted to chloroplast

• e.g. potato tubers can turn green when exposed to light

Amyloplast

Do not eat green potatoes

https://cdn.britannica.com/69/194969-050-5A232993/potatoes-solanine.jpg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amyloplast#/media/File:Potato_-_Amyloplasts.jpg 14
Where did plastids (and mitochondria) come from?
• Endosymbiotic theory

• Mitochondria and plastids

were once free-living
prokaryotes taken in by early
eukaryotic cells
• either as food or parasites

• These “prokaryotes” provide

the host with energy and food

• The host in turn provides

protection
• Endosymbiosis

• cell living inside another cell

with a mutual benefit for
both
Meyerowitz, Science 2012
15
Where did plastids (and mitochondria) come from? (cont.)
• Cyanobacteria (or blue-green “algae”) are considered ancestors
of plastids

• gram-negative bacteria capable of conducting photosynthesis

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chloroplast#/media/
File:Chloroplast_endosymbiosis_simple.svg

16
What are the evidence?
• Chloroplasts and cyanobacteria have many common features:

• Double membrane
• Thylakoids
• DNA
• Ribosomes

• Chloroplast genes are closer to those in cyanobacteria than in eukaryotes

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chloroplast#/media/File:Chloroplast-cyanobacterium_comparison.svg 17
What are the evidence? (cont.)
• However, though billions years of evolution,

• Chloroplasts have lost much of its DNA

• Genes important for many of its basic cellular functions are integrated into
the plant nuclear genome
• cannot divide independently
• Semi-autonomous

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chloroplast#/media/File:Chloroplast-cyanobacterium_comparison.svg 18
What are the special structures in plant cells? — 2

2. Cell wall

19
Plant cell wall
• Cell wall is the outermost
layer of plant cells

• It protects cells

• first line of defense against

mechanical injury and
pathogens
• It provides rigid structures
Cell wall for cells and the entire plant

• allows formation of structures

and upright growth
• maintains and dictates cell
shape and ultimate the
shape of a plant

20
Plant cell wall provides us with useful materials
• Plant cell walls are very
important to us

• we wear them, i.e. cottons

• we write on them, i.e.

papers
• we build things with them,
http://cotton-source.com/tag/cotton-fabric-store-mississauga/page/3/
i.e. woods

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mE2VWojDb1g

https://www.quick-garden.co.uk/blog/history-wooden-houses-uk/
21
What is plant cell wall made of?

https://www.dariasciart.com/nebel/jw2ni7ee5bj70s76n4ezc0o0jt8p1h

22
Composition of plant cell wall (primary)
• Cell wall consists of 3 major types of carbohydrates

• Cellulose

• Hemicellulose

• Pectin

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK21709/

23
Composition of plant cell wall (primary)
• Cellulose
• Linear polymer of D-glucose monosaccharides
• 40-50% of the total mass of wood & 98% of cotton
• Most abundant organic polymer on earth
• In cell wall, they are bundled and connected by hydrogen bonds, forming
strong fibre (i.e. cellulose microfibril; ~ 36 individual chains in diameter)
• Very high tensile strength (hard to break by pulling)
Cellulose microfibril

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellulose#/media/File:Cellulose_strand.svg

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK21709/ 24
Composition of plant cell wall (primary)
• Hemicellulose
• Non-cellulosic, non-pectic polysaccharides in cell wall
• derived from several sugars besides glucose, such as xylose
• contains shorter chains than cellulose and is branched
• Cross-links cellulose to form a network of fibres
Hemicellulose
Example of a type of hemicellulose
polymer (Xylan)

https://www.e-education.psu.edu/egee439/node/664

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK21709/

25
Composition of plant cell wall (primary)
• Pectin
• A heterogenous group of polysaccharides that are rich in
galacturonic acid

• Adhesive, semi-rigid gel properties; flexible

• Constitute a matrix that glues the cross-linked fibres together
Pectin Galacturonan Pectin

http://www.epharmacognosy.com/2012/03/pectin.html

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK21709/
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Sure-Jell-Original-Premium-Fruit-
Pectin-1-75-oz-Box/10292609 26
Composition of plant cell wall (primary)
Plant cell wall vs. reinforced concrete
Provide strength

Hold fibre
together

Glue network
together

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK21709/

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-design-reinforced-
concrete-building-midas-gen-prince-max

27
Primary vs. Secondary cell wall
• Primary cell wall
• contains cellulose, hemicellulose and pectin
• found in young and growing cells
• provides strength with some flexibility and permeability

• Secondary cell wall

• forms between primary cell wall and plasma
membrane
• contains cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin (more Sclerenchyma
like “concrete” than pectin)
• found in cells critical for support, e.g.
sclerenchyma cells and xylem cells
• in these cells, production of secondary cell wall
only starts when they stop to enlarge
• provides additional strength and rigidity
• important to keep tree trunks upright
28
 Primary vs. Secondary cell wall (cont.)
• Lignin Secondary cell wall Primary cell wall
• complex network of aromatic/
phenolic polymer
• hydrophobic
• crucial in conducting water in
xylem cells

An example of possible lignin structure

29
What are the special structures in plant cells? — 3

3. Vacuole

30
What are vacuoles?
• Membrane-bound organelles that are filled with fluids

• membrane of vacuole: tonoplast or vacuolar membrane

• Plant cells generally have one large vacuole that occupies 30 to 80% of its
volume

• Much larger but fewer in numbers than the vesicles in animal cells

31
What are vacuoles? (cont.)
• Versatile organelles with diverse functions, such as storage,
lysis, growth and support

• dependent on cell type, plant organ and developmental stage

32
Vacuoles in cell expansion
• Expansion of vacuoles is the major driving force for plant cell
growth

• achieved by simple uptake of water in the vacuole

• without using much energy in making new cytoplasm, proteins,
etc.
• rapid and energy efficient
• During this process, protein factors are released to temporary
weaken the cross-links in the cell wall

33
Vacuoles in cell expansion (cont.)
• Cell expansion in plants is usually directional and is determined
by the arrangement of cellulose microfibrils

• Cellulose microfibrils restrict expansion

• growth plane is perpendicular to the orientation of the cellulose

microfibrils

34
Vacuoles for maintaining plant shape
• In well-watered plants, turgor pressure exerted by vacuoles
provides support for plant shape

• stems are erect; leaves are fully expanded

• When water becomes limited, plants first use water reserve from
vacuoles

• Turgor pressure goes down; plants wilt

http://www.biology4kids.com/files/cell_vacuole.html
35
Vacuoles for maintaining plant shape (cont.)
Plant under
Hydrated plant drought stress

Plasmolysis
Loss of turgor causes
the detachment of
protoplast* from cell
wall

*Protoplast: The
entire cell excluding
the cell wall

http://pia-dev.mgmt.science.uq.edu.au/content/314-turgor-loss-cytorrhysis-and-plasmolysis
36
Vacuoles for maintaining plant shape (cont.)
• Wilting is a way for plants to temporarily survive without water

• Water is drawn from vacuoles not cytoplasm

• As soon as water becomes available

• Water absorbed from root goes back to vacuoles and they

regain turgor pressure
• Plants resume its normal form and function

Rescue a Damaged Wilting Plant (from the bargain rack!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f6uCS_2vllc
37
Vacuoles as storage compartment
• Independent storage warehouse within the cell

• Storage materials would not interfere with the

pH, solute concentration, and hence,
physiology of the cell
• They can store:

• Water and inorganic ions, such as potassium

and chloride

• can be very dynamic with transporter

PSV in tobacco cells
proteins, e.g. stomatal guard cells during
opening and closing (Lecture 8)
• Mono-, di-, and oligosaccharides

• Sugar beet and sugar cane accumulate

sucrose at a very high concentration
• Proteins

• Seeds from legumes (soybeans, lentils)

stores high levels of proteins in Protein Lau et al., Plant Biotechnol J, 2010

Storage Vacuoles (PSV) for seed germination

38
Vacuoles as storage compartment (cont.)
Vacuoles storing anthocyanin
• They can also store:

• Metabolic products

• e.g. anthocyanin, purple

pigment, which would be
toxic to cells at high level
• Acids

• e.g. citric acids in lemons; pH

could go below 3 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vacuole#/media/File:Rhoeo_Discolor_-
_Plasmolysis.jpg

• Harmful compounds

• Plants lack excretion system

• e.g. sequester arsenic,
sodium, cadmium

https://www.myrecipes.com/extracrispy/lemons-are-the-best-fruit

39
Vacuoles as recycling and lysis compartment
• Lytic vacuoles

• Contains large set of hydrolytic enzymes

• e.g. proteases and acidic phosphatases
• Lysis and recycling of storage or misfolded proteins
• Vacuoles can be interconverted

• e.g. During seed development and germination, lytic vacuoles

are converted to protein storage vacuoles and then back to lytic
vacuoles
Vacuolar
transformation
in seeds

Shimada & Hara-Nishimura,

MiMB, 2016
40
What are the special structures in plant cells? — 4

4. Plasmodesmata

41
What are plasmodesmata?
• Plasmodesmata

• Plasmo (Latin): fluid

• Desma (Greek): bond

• Channels (w. fairly complex structure) that span the cell walls of
adjacent cells

• i.e. intercellular bridges

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plasmodesma#/media/File:Plasmodesmata_en.svg

42
Why do plants need plasmodesmata?
• Since all plant cells are locked in place by rigid cell wall,

• transport and communication become an issue

• Plasmodesmata enable intercellular transport and communication

• Cells from a distance become connected

• Physiological and developmental processes can be coordinated

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plasmodesma#/media/File:Plasmodesmata_en.svg

43
Symplastic vs Apoplastic pathway
• Symplastic pathway

• movement of materials between cells through the plasmodesmata

• Apoplastic pathway

• movement of materials through the extracellular space (i.e. cell

wall and airspaces outside the plasma membrane)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plasmodesma#/media/File:Apoplast_and_symplast_pathways.svg
44
What do plasmodesmata transport?
• Plasmodesmata have roles in the transport of water, nutrients,
macromolecules, and growth regulators

• Proteins (including transcription factors)

• mRNA and gene silencing signals

• Pathogens, such as virus, can utilize the channels and move from
infected to uninfected cells

Callose
Virus

Tubule-forming virus

Lee & Lu, Trends Plant Sci, 2011

45
What do plasmodesmata transport? (cont.)
• Plasmodesmata help to connect
cells which cannot be reached
by plant veins

• For example, in the transport of

sugar (Lecture 1)

• Sugars are synthesized in

mesophyll cells in the leaves
• Plasmodesmata convey
nutrient molecules produced in
these mesophyll cells (source)
toward the phloem tissues and
eventually to the sink tissues

• Also important for systemic

Yadav et al., Front. Plant Sci., 2015
signaling in plant defense

46
Do plants have a nervous system? (from Lecture 1)
• A danger signal (wave of calcium) is transported to other part of the
plants (systemic signaling) when plants are attacked by a caterpillar

Toyota et al., Science, 2018

47
Plasmodesmata transmits the danger signal throughout the leave

Wild-type plant Plant with plasmodesmata blocked

Toyota et al., Science, 2018

48
Plasmodesmata transmits the danger signal throughout the leave (cont.)

Wild-type plant

Plant with
plasmodesmata
defect

(Picture version)

Toyota et al., Science, 2018

49
Summary
• Plants and animals share common cellular features for
fundamental life processes

• Plastids are critical for plant life and they are likely derived from
cyanobacteria

• Plant cell walls provide structural support and protection for

plants

• Plant vacuoles have critical roles in growth and support, and

function as storage and lytic compartments

• Plasmodesmata allows efficient transport and communication

between plant cells and the whole plant

50
Next week:

LSM2254 Fundamentals of Plant Biology

Lecture 3:

The model plant

Arabidopsis

A seedling of the model plant

Arabidopsis

51